A look inside the Navy-Notre Dame matchup

Navy limited Notre Dame to six possessions in last year’s meeting, which was the primary reason it scored a 28-27 upset. That ball control strategy tops the gameplan again this season, especially since Notre Dame is capable of chewing up the clock with its power running game. The Midshipmen lead the Football Bowl Subdivision with an average time of possession of 35 minutes, 47 seconds and will probably need to hit that mark in order to pull the upset.

Notre Dame Key: Get off the field on defense, score touchdowns on offense

The Fighting Irish are still stinging from last year’s loss to the Mids when they scored on five of six possessions, but it wasn’t enough. Head coach Brian Kelly has made it a priority to change those two factors this time around. Notre Dame must get third down stops to prevent Navy from moving the chains and it would help greatly if it could force a few turnovers to short-circuit drives. Meanwhile, the Fighting Irish cannot settle for field goals like they did on two scoring drives last season.

Series history: This is the 91st consecutive meeting between the schools. Notre Dame leads 76-13-1, but Navy has won four meetings since 2007

Of Note: Notre Dame must win its final two games in order to remain in contention for a New Year’s Six Bowl berth. Navy can clinch a winning regular season by pulling the upset. The Midshipmen are seeking their second straight victory over the Fighting Irish, which has not happened since 1960-61.

Navy has beaten Notre Dame a total of 13 times. However, only five of those wins came against Fighting Irish teams that finished with winning records.

Navy starting safety Sean Williams, the team’s leading tackler, must sit out the first half of today’s game after being penalized for leading with the crown of his helmet while hitting SMU quarterback Ben Hicks last Saturday.

Notre Dame tailback Josh Adams leads the Football Bowl Subdivision with seven runs of 60 yards or more. Adams broke loose for a career-long 84-yard touchdown run against USC.

Quote-Unquote: “We have great respect for Notre Dame and we know who they are. We have to play perfect to beat them and they have to help us. That’s never going to change. That’s not a knock on our players, it’s just reality. If they’re not humble enough to accept that then we’re never going to have a chance to compete against Notre Dame.”

“This is a a team that is very disciplined and plays smart football. It’s a team that manages the clock very well. It’s a team that fights hard for four quarters. It will be a great challenge for our team.